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Cristian Volpato stunned Serie A when he delivered a winning goal for AS Roma in their battle against the bottom club Verona. Roma earned a stunning comeback win after Verona had led by a goal, but when the hosts were handed a red card (Dawidowicz) in the first half, things changed.
Roma equalized in first-half stoppage time before Volpato came to the rescue. He entered the game in the 57th minute as a substitute for Nicolo Zaniolo, who had scored the first goal for Roma. It was half an hour later that Volpato scored the crucial goal before El-Shaarawy confirmed a victory for the visitors.
With the win, Roma moved up to fourth in the Serie A standings and next week, the Giallorossi with face city rivals Lazio in the Rome derby.
Who is Cristian Volpato?
Volpato was born 18 years ago in Camperdown, a city in New South Wales. He started his career in the youth system of Sydney United 58 before joining Sydney FC. However, he was deemed not good enough by the decision-makers there and the same thing happened the youngster during a stint with Western Sydney Wanderers shortly after. However, the scouts out of Rome found something curious about the young talent and invited him to join them in the Italian capital.
He is slowly earning his place in Jose Mourinho’s rotation, but the question now is who will he pick as his nation of choice? He can play for both Australia and Italy, however, it seems the latter has the advantage. Volpato already starred for Italy’s U19 team scoring two goals in this year’s Euros.
Australia’s coach Graham Arnold, it was reported, is considering selecting Volpato into his 26-man final squad to play in Qatar at the World Cup.
Volpato still has a long way to being an impactful player, but if Arnold selects him for Australia’s senior team, he wouldn’t be eligible to play for Italy in the future.
Should Arnold pick Volpato?
The answer to this question could be two-fold. Many would think that as of now, after only getting four total first-team appearances for Roma, Volpato is not yet ready to contribute at the top level required at the World Cup. However, the risk of losing him to Italy is real and could hunt the Socceroos for years to come.
Australia doesn’t have a world-renowned football star and with talents like Volpato, they need to be careful in how they approach him. A slight miscommunication could any relationship abruptly.
There was a situation earlier this year when Volpato was called to the U23 Australia team, but he was withdrawn by Roma. Later on, he mocked the team on social media which didn’t sit well with the Australian public.
The debate about Volpato’s possible presence in Qatar for Australia has been rising in the last few months, but at the cusp of the World Cup, the time is now to make a decision. Graham Arnold is under pressure from some circles in Australian football to select the Roma player, but some feel he still doesn’t deserve that chance.
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